The prior art presents at least four general types of hand prostheses; a first being the passive type which affords a close approximation of the appearance of a hand but which has no functioning mechanical parts by which any meaningful holding or manipulative activity may be performed. A second type includes those devices which have mechanically functioning parts such as hooks and the like but which have little or no aesthetic appeal. A third type includes those prosthetic devices that attempt to duplicate the specific physical construction of the natural hand and thus require a great deal of complicated mechanical finger/thumb skeletal type parts and connections therefor, and also an associated complex assortment of actuating means therefor. This third type as well as the above noted second type usually require shoulder harnesses or other similar body-powered mechanical means for actuation thereof. A fourth type of prosthesis includes the more recent myoelectric devices which include not only the usual mechanical hand parts but also very elaborate and/or expensive electrical operating and control systems. Each of the above noted types of hand prosthesis has its own set of advantages but each such type also has some inherent disadvantages that act to severely detract from its practicality. Specifically, the first noted type has no functional capability at all, while the second type can understandably leave the wearer with very real emotional and/or mental anguish by reason of the prosthesis' lack of any significant amount of aesthetic appeal. The noted third type of prosthesis require mechanical harnesses that are not only cumbersome to use but also require assistance to put on and take off of a wearer. Also they usually have too much mechanical "clap-trap" in the attempted duplication of the finger/thumb etc. details of a natural hand structure and have even more so for the gearing such as cables, levers, linkages etc. which make up the various required actuating means for operating the many hand parts of such a prosthesis. As respects the fourth type the user must wear a battery pack and associated wiring somewhere on his body and must be exceptionally careful as to the environment in which the device is used in view of the susceptible nature of the electrical systems involved to exposure to common substances such as water, dirt, sand, etc. which readily act as operational contaminants and which can in turn necessitate very expensive repairs at a central "High-Tech" station. The initial costs here range in the many thousands of dollars which is just too expensive for most families particularly where everyday use thereof can be so restricted due to the noted environmental problems.